Lent 2013 {part 1}

LENT (Feb.13-Mar.30, 2013) marks the six weeks leading up to Easter. It is a season of solemn remembrance, an opportunity to re-center our hearts on that which matters most – the victory won for us by the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. As a community, we will celebrating and observing Lent together in three parts.

Why: During Lent we participate in the spiritual discipline of fasting. Fasting reveals what controls us. Far too often, we self-medicate with movies, television, music, social media, etc. We spend too little time alone and unplugged. As we fast during Lent, our desire is to lose our appetite for worldly things and to begin desiring God alone. Fasting is meant to still and silence us, so that we can hear things as they most truly are. We turn off the music and listen for God’s voice. We turn off the television and instead watch for God moving around us. We step away from social media to engage people personally rather than digitally. Ultimately, we set aside certain things in order to create space for God to move and speak. And as we do, we are called to respond with generosity. As you fast from media, consider taking the money you would’ve spent on entertainment and give to the efforts being made in Zimbabwe to eradicate the destructive effects of poverty & AIDS.